French Toast with Marraqueta

"The smell of good bread baking, like the sound of lightly flowing water, is indescribable in its evocation of innocence and delight."
(~MFK Fisher)

"The smell of bread baking," especially at home, is definitely one of the most alluring, delicious food aromas which envelope one with a sense of warmth, and titillates the salivary glands and stirs up a ravenous desire to sink ones fingers and teeth into a chunk of warmth and satisfaction. It does lend a sense of well-being, as delectable aromas emanating from a warm hearth say all's well! And that's my humble opinion!

I can remember, four decades back, how a local bakery would send out freshly baked, hot-from-the-oven loaves of bread (uncut) neatly piled in a metal trunk, strapped onto the carrier of a bicycle. The aroma would precede the thin vendor and his hoarse shouts of "Taazi double roti lelo," and we would be at the gate, waiting impatiently, to pick our bread! Mummy would be furious because we'd break off chunks and start eating it even before she had paid for the lot. I must add that there were days when we would carry the butter dish with us too! Crazy? Absolutely, crazy about fresh-from-the-oven, hot bread! 

But to come back to marraqueta French Toasts. I discovered we were out of the usual breads we buy; integral; multigrain; multi-seed; olive etc. I wanted to make french toasts. Not that I can eat them, but I just felt like making them for the family! There were fresh, soft marraquetas begging to be used and I did just that. Marraqueta is a Chilean bread roll. I like them.

Ingredients

Marraqueta...............................................2, sliced into four halves

Eggs.........................................................2 large, beaten

Vanilla extract.........................................2-3 drops

Nutmeg....................................................abt 2-3 pinches of finely grated nutmeg. I prefer freshly grated to packaged powdered nutmeg. But you suit yourself.

Sugar.......................................................2 level tbsps azucar rubia or white sugar should do too

Lemon.....................................................half

Fine grain white sugar............................3 tbsps

Oil...........................................................11/2 tbsp

Azucar rubia is a light brown sugar which is unrefined.

Whip up the eggs. Add the vanilla extract and grated nutmeg, and 2 tbsps of sugar.

Place two halves of the marraqueta inner side down, in the egg. Gently press down so that they soak up the egg properly. 

With an oil brush, brush some oil in a heated non stick fry pan.

Now place the egg soaked marraqueta, egg-side down, in the pan. Lower heat to medium.

Once again, gently press down, once or twice, on the top.

when slightly browned turn over.

Allow to cook a little. turn over again. When the egg is cooked, remove from pan and repeat with the other two halves.

While the other two are cooking, sprinkle some very fine sugar over the egg-side of the already done toasts, and squeeze a bit of lemon juice over it. Alternatively, you could add the lemon juice, a few drops, to the sugar, mix and allow to dry out a bit and then sprinkle it over the toasts.

You're all done now and breakfast is ready. Add fruit and coffee/tea or juice.

_______________________________________________________________________________